One of the dining rooms, painted blue with enormous swags and tassels, is inspired by the 19th-century Russian painter Leon Bakst.

WSJ: Like Home, Only Better

It's as if Spain is the life of the party, a land of ribbons and bows, cockades and tassels, fringe and lace, not to mention pompoms.

WSJ: Joaqu��n Sorolla & the Glory of Spanish Dress | Between Heaven and Earth | By Laura Jacobs

Crandall's just finished a telephone call when Donald Burr--founder of People Express, the upstart discount carrier that soared and then crashed--bolts through the door, his paisley tie and loafer tassels flapping.

FORBES: A700's Numbers

In traditional plant breeding, some inbred maize plants destined to be crossed with others have their male, pollen-producing tassels cut off to prevent self-fertilisation (maize is a horticultural hermaphrodite, carrying both male and female sex organs).

ECONOMIST: Terminator genes

That day, the procession was coming down Fifth Avenue: the majorette twirled her baton in the air, the big drums banged, and the balloon giant, representing the Satisfied Customer, flew among the skyscrapers, obediently advancing on leashes held by girls in kepis, tassels, and fringed epaulets, riding spangly motorcycles.

NEWYORKER: The Daughters of the Moon

Adelson, typically, was consumed with things large and small: the precise replication of the Campanile di San Marco and the Bridge of Sighs, the tassels on the curtains, the question of whether it was cheaper to rent or buy cranes (he bought), the color of the canals (he ordered them drained and their surface repainted, for a more perfect blue).

NEWYORKER: The Brass Ring